Retrospection: Dragonshy
by Mama May-Eye
Summary: An internal reflection on the day the girls ascended the mountain and Fluttershy was forced to face one of her worst fears. A day when she thought she was useless. And a day when she learned she wasn't.


**Disclaimer:** My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and its characters do not belong to me - unfortunately - they belong to their respective creator(s)/owner(s). Most dialogue in this fic is borrowed directly from the My Little Pony episode "Dragonshy" (Season 1, episode 7).  
**Author Note:** My first Pony fic! I'm trying to branch out my writing to different series. So, I was watching this episode a few weeks ago and noticed how cruel Rainbow Dash was in the episode as opposed to how she is in season 2 and 3 (it seems a lot of them were meaner in the first season) and decided to write this based on how Fluttershy must've felt to deal with all that negativity. Enjoy and leave feedback!

Fluttershy shivered as she stared up at the monument of doom and gloom in front of her. She didn't want to go up this mountain. No way. Not when it meant facing one of those…one of those…!

_Dragons_.

She shivered again in repulsion as the thought of meeting one of those terrifying, huge, and mean creatures crossed her mind. They were just so…angry! All of the time! And aggressive and mean and antagonistic and…other words for "mean". She'd much rather stay here in the bushes on the ground where it was nice and safe. Sort of.

If only the others weren't so taken on her going with them up the mountain, they'd probably forget about her, leaving her day free of dragons and teeth and claws and fire. She could hear them laughing to each other ahead of her as they started up the mountain. Maybe if she stayed here her friends wouldn't remember her until they were already at the top!

"Hey! What're you waiting for – an invitation?"

Or maybe not.

Fluttershy poked her head out of the bushes to look up at them reluctantly. They already seemed so far away!

"I-It's so, so steep," she replied feeling her stomach flip at the thought of going so _high_ and meeting a _dragon_ on top of that. There were reasons she preferred the ground, one of them being that she wasn't as good a flier as other ponies, certainly not Rainbow Dash. Sometimes when her nerves got the better of her she could hardly lift herself off of the ground. If she were in midair when the dragon made that terrifying snore again, her nerves could be the death of her. No, she didn't want to go up something so big. Ever.

She tried not to feel the sting of Rainbow Dash's words as she sarcastically suggested Fluttershy use her wings to ascend the mountain. Rainbow Dash didn't know she was afraid of dragons, nor did the others. They probably thought she was being her usual shy self, so she couldn't blame them for being impatient with her.

"C'mon, Fluttershy, you can do it! Flap those wings."

Well, they wouldn't continue with the mission from Princess Celestia if she at least didn't try. And wouldn't you know! Flapping her wings, she managed to almost get to Rainbow Dash's height above the ground before she looked up…and promptly fell as the rumble from the dragon's snore caused her nerves to flee her and her wings to lock against her sides. See? _This_ is what she meant! She couldn't go up the mountain relying on her wings if it meant she could fall from the sky. Attempting to tune out the disgruntled and impatient voices of her friends, she tried to get her wings to unlock from their position.

No good. They were firmly flush against her and would remain so until she gained confidence. Which would probably be _after_ this venture. Hearing Applejack volunteering to take her a different way up the mountain made her feel better, even if her nerves locked up in fear even more and embarrassingly forced her to lie on the ground, limbs stiff in the air. If Fluttershy could move, she'd thank her friend for her kindness, for thinking of her because not many ponies did (it didn't help that she was quiet and they forgot she was there most of the time, as this morning showed), but she could hardly unlock her mouth for fear that she'd let out a scream of terror that, she felt, wouldn't be much appreciated by the ponies and animals (_and dragons_) around her. She felt Applejack tie her tail into a knot around the work horse's head and then they were off.

._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.

Being dragged across the ground, wings scrubbing uncomfortably against tiny rocks, was not exactly Fluttershy's idea of a fun time. But, then again, there was nothing about this adventure that was fun. And she knew, what with her limbs locked up, that this was the only way Applejack could get her up the mountain besides trying to carry her in some way that would probably result in her continuously slipping off and delaying them further.

"S-Sorry, Applejack," she heard herself say.

The orange-skinned pony didn't turn her head to reply because of the weight Fluttershy's body was putting against her head and neck. "Ain't no problem, Sugarcube. I know you didn't wanna come in the first place."

That sounded like an excuse. "Oh, no, I mean, I want to be here for my friends. I just…I just…."

_…can't handle dragons._

They descended into silence with nothing but Applejack's eventually-labored breathing to break the quiet. Every time Fluttershy started to get feeling back into her hooves, the monstrous creature at the top of the mountain would snore and she would lock up in fear again at the thought of meeting it. Eventually they heard the sounds of their friends' voices very close by and, with a final energetic push from Applejack, the two ponies caught sight of their wayward friends.

Relief filled Fluttershy as they joined the others. There was safety in numbers, yes, but she was just relieved that they hadn't been…been _gobbled_ up or something while she and Applejack took the other path. Using her relief as a crutch, she uncertainly stood on shaky legs while Applejack took a moment to catch her breath.

"_Told_ you it would take them forever."

Fluttershy ducked her head in admonishment. She really didn't mean to slow them down. Really she didn't. But she didn't know how to _not _allow her fear to overwhelm her. Not like Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight. Even Rarity showed courage when she faced the manticore in the Everfree Forest.

She'd just have to try a little harder. Like always.

._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.

As soon as Applejack managed to breathe without her chest heaving with each breath, the group was trotting again. The dragon had reared its horrifying, ugly sounds in Fluttershy's ears again and, while she had enough sense to stay on her legs this time, she couldn't get them to move. Thus, Applejack once again had to move her along, making them fall further behind the others even though they started ahead this time.

At least Fluttershy could see where they were going this time. Not that there was much to see. Rocks, sky, terrifying _steep_ cliff edges, more rocks, Rainbow Dash's disgruntled and annoyed glances back towards them, then the ground as Fluttershy couldn't bring herself to look into her pegasus friend's eyes anymore. As such, it was a mild surprise when they came across a cliff in the way of the path they were to take. A cliff _this_ high up? And they would have to _cross_ it? No way. There was no way she could do that!

During her internal monologue Twilight and the others had already leapt over the cavern and were waiting for her. Oh, horse apples! She didn't even pay attention to _how_ they did it. How did they leap over something so _dangerous_. So _scary_. So…

"…wide."

"C'mon, Fluttershy. We should be much further along by now," Twilight's voice sounded across the gap.

Yes, they should be much further along by now. Fluttershy was holding them up. _Again_. She tentatively peeked over the _wide_ edge, trying to psyche herself up to do what Applejack suggested and leap over it like they did. If not for the dragon, she might have succeeded.

Crouched against the stable rocks of the mountain, she couldn't help but feel like even more of a coward.

._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.

Making it over the horridly wide gap was not as hard as she thought it was when it involved encouragement from her friends. Especially Pinkie Pie. She never really gave it thought before that, like Fluttershy's songs to her woodland friends, Pinkie's songs can also serve a purpose besides chasing away sadness. Her songs inspire _confidence_. Maybe Fluttershy could get Pinkie to sing a song for her, to chase away the fear that was steadily growing the further they ascended – like Pinkie did when Nightmare Moon used her magic to impede them with fear in the forest.

Yes! A song would make everything much better than this crushing silence. She opened her mouth to say as much to Pinkie.

"Let's keep it down," Twilight cautioned ahead of her. "According to my map we're entering an avalanche zone. The smallest peep could cause a huge rockslide."

A huge rockslide? Wasn't that called…

"An ava-! Ava-!"

"Shhh!"

The silence was even more crushing now than it was before. Crushing. Like what would happen if even one rock slid out of place. A hole avalanche of huge, hard, crushing rocks descending upon their little pony heads. It was almost worse than falling off the mountain. If she fell, at least Rainbow Dash might forgive her enough to catch her and save her. But there was none of that in an avalanche. No open space was safe. No clearance to fly without the risk of a boulder clipping your wings. Huddling down against the ground as if she could sense an avalanche coming at any moment, Fluttershy crept along behind the others. Any minute now. Any minute there _would_ be an avalanche and there was no Celestia to save the day. Her senses heightened in alarm. Her heart began to pound. Keeping her tongue to the roof of her mouth helped to distract her.

Something landed on her flank.

"AVALAN-!"

Applejack hurriedly clamped her mouth shut as Fluttershy's voice ominously echoed across the mountain side. Heart pounding, the group waited in silence for something to happen. As the rumbling of the cascading boulders shook the ground beneath their hooves, Fluttershy couldn't help but reflect distantly that the previous moment was one in which her voice had been the loudest she'd ever heard it.

The ponies scattered, disorganized as panic and sense of preservation overtook them. Everywhere they looked there was a rock waiting to violently smash them into the ground. Fluttershy didn't have time to feel horrified at the fact that her actions may have cost her friends and herself their lives as a cascade of rocks and dirt engulfed her, sweeping her to the bottom of the pile before she could even cry out. Panic gripped her as she tried to twist and dig herself out of the rock grave. Pegasi were not meant to be buried. Especially not buried under dark and hard and painful rocks. She kept her panic under mild control – thinking of her animal friends that waited for her return at her home helped – and made sure to keep her wings close to her body to protect them from being harmed as she climbed desperately out of the rock pile. Daylight shone through the cracks and with it sound returned to her in the form of her friend's voices.

Even as she met Rainbow Dash's scornful stare, she couldn't help but thank Celestia that no one was harmed or worse from her mistake. She could never live with herself if such kind ponies that she loved were injured thanks to her. Relief and guilt warred within her as she followed the others over the newly created hill of rocks, dirt, and boulders. Rainbow Dash's glare weighed down her head and she made sure not to complain at the steepness of the hill as she climbed and slipped her way to the top. She didn't mean to be a burden but she'd try her best to make her friends less angry with her. They were the ponies she loved most, after all, and Rainbow was only trying to do her best to help everpony in Equestria, like they were. No doubt the blue pegasus was just as worried about their home as Fluttershy. Fluttershy kept this in mind as she lost her hooves slipped on the loose dirt, causing her to crash into Rarity and Applejack below, and brought them all down to the bottom of the hill more quickly than they expected. She kept this in mind when Rarity apologized for something that wasn't her fault and she kept this mind when she was once again at the mercy of Rainbow's glare.

Yes, they were all worried. It didn't mean her friends disliked her, even if she couldn't blame them for wanting to be short with her.

It was another quiet and tense hour that passed with the sun above them and the cold slowly seeping into their hooves and coats when they crested the mountain's path and came within sight of the dragon's cave.

_Oh no._

Smoke poured out of the cave at a fast pace, decreasing in intensity with each snore but never stopping completely. This much smoke was probably just a warning for the amount of fire that could produce it. It was a scary thought – all that fire stored in the belly of a razor-toothed, grouchy reptile. Fluttershy held back as the others walked closer until they were right outside the cave entrance. Far enough to breathe comfortable but close enough to get barbecued if the dragon was awake and watching them. Fluttershy shuttered, the sense of impending doom flowing over her body like the smoke near her friends. She'd just…she'd just wait here for them. So, she hunkered down close to the ground as Twilight took charge of the situation, feeling even worse when she couldn't get her legs to move to follow her friend.

._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.

They just wouldn't understand. They couldn't understand how hard and scary this was for her. She really did feel bad about not being able to help and the confidence everypony had in her abilities only hurt more as she walked away from them, leaving them to face her fear for her. Oh, Celestia. If they failed because she couldn't muscle up and be brave for a second, she didn't know how she could go back to Angel Bunny and look her other animal friends in the eye and tell them they had to move away forever because the smoke of the dragon she failed to convince to move away would cover the sun and destroy all of their food. At the thought of her animal friends and possible failure, her face scrunched up in internal agony. She scrunched her eyes shut to keep in any tears threatening to build up. Why did she even come?

From her eventual place behind a boulder, facing morosely to look at the landscape trying to find her cottage from the height, she heard as one by one her friends failed to convince the beast inside to leave. First Twilight, then Rarity, then Pinkie Pie…it was disheartening. She scrubbed at the ground with the tip of her hoof in self-pity as she heard Rainbow Dash leave to try her hoof at it.

Fluttershy sighed and closed her eyes.

Then shot up as a dragon's angry roar pierced the air. She heard Rainbow Dash eject from the cave against her will and the dragon's ground-shaking approach. She crouched lower. He was mad now. If he wasn't made before, he was now. And he was coming out where he could destroy them all with his teeth and claws and fire and smoke and strength. Her breathing sped up. She couldn't see what was happening. Was everyone okay? What happened to her friends! What happened to Rainbow Dash? Were they okay? She bent down to sneak a peek around the boulder when the top half of it cracked and fell down, exposing her raised flank. In surprise, she straightened only to find the dragon peering in her line of sight…and her friends injured on the ground in front of her.

She stared at them in shock as they groaned in pain. She'd never seen her friends hurt before. Never had to be the cause of it, either.

Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack. The only ponies who ever bothered to stick up for her, to worry about her and invite her to out to socialize even when she didn't think that was what she needed sometimes. They were the only ones who gave her the time of day, wanted her company, glad when she arrived, sad when she left, worried for her safety, valued her talent. They were her sister elements. But most of all, they were her friends.

They were _her friends_.

"How dare you…."

All of her self-loathing, self-pity, and uncertainty fled from her as if they had never been there to be replaced with determination and anger.

"_How dare you_!"

_No one_ hurt the ponies she loved most!

"Listen here, mister!" She yelled as she landed on the dragon's red snout and trotted to the beginning of it in order to get closer to look him in the eyes. "Just because you're big _doesn't_ mean you get to be a bully! You may have huge teeth and sharp claws and snort smoke and breathe fire, but you do not-! I repeat! You do _n__ot_! Hurt! My! Friends!" She opened one eye wider to look him in an eyeball that was taller than she was. "You got that?"

A tense silence descended which she was not even aware of, so overcome with fury and indignation as she kept her disapproving eyes focused on the scaly culprit in front of her. She would not move until she got a _response_.

"_Well_?"

At her tone the dragon in front of her lifted a claw as if to make a point.

"**But that rainbow one kicked me**…."

Fluttershy called up her knowledge of settling past disputes in her cottage when Angel or some other animal got a little too rough and rowdy.

"And I am very sorry about that, but you're bigger than she is and you should know better." Remembering their mission, she added, "You should also know better than to take a nap where your snoring could become a health hazard to other creatures."

"**But, I**…"

"Don't you 'But, I' me, mister." Now for the apology before forgiveness. "Now what do you have to say for yourself?"

Silence.

"I said _what_ do you have to say for yourself."

She honestly expected more of a fight – as most of her more stubborn animal friends responsible for instigating fights tended to do – and was only a little surprised when the target of her ire burst into apologetic tears which were so big that they rained down upon the ponies below. In rearing animals of all ages, it was best to make them realize the error they made, apologize, then assure them that they were still loved and there were no hard feelings.

Falling back on her caretaking experience, she gently rubbed the dragon's snout.

"There, there. No need to cry. You're not a bad dragon, you just made a bad decision," she soothed as she flew down to join the others. "Now go pack your things. You just need to find a new place to sleep, that all." She smiled encouragingly up at him as he turned calmly back into his hoard to do just that.

Now that she had calmed as well, she began to think…maybe she wasn't so useless.

Her friends, not as hurt as she thought they were at first, ran to her. They surrounded her with yells of delight and Twilight caught her eye with a proud gleam.

"You did it! I knew you could do it!"

She did it? _She_ did it? ...She did, didn't she…? Fluttershy exercised her talent like she always did and it was just as easy. It came with the added bonus of facing one of her worst fears. She guessed…

The dragon took off with his most valuable items in his giant claws, sending a gust of air sweeping toward them.

They watched as he left Ponyville and ascended into the sky to hopefully find a safer place to sleep further away.

Fluttershy blinked in hope and happiness. She guessed…she was a better pony than she gave herself credit. She turned to face her friends as they waited for her to descend the mountain with them. Each of them risked their lives to get here and they never once left her behind, not even Rainbow. She looked at the blue pegasus waiting for her, refusing to leave her behind even after all the trouble she caused. Fluttershy pranced over to her fellow elements, her heart soaring with good feelings instead of sinking with the bad. This journey had also taught her something. Her friends would stick by her no matter what she did or didn't do…because they liked her for being _herself_.

And that was all the she ever needed.

._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.

"_Dear Princess Celestia,_

_I am happy to report that the dragon has departed our fair country, and that it was my good friend Fluttershy who convinced him to go. This adventure has taught me to never lose faith in your friends. They can be an amazing source of strength and can help you overcome even your greatest fears. _

_Always your faithful student,_

_Twilight Sparkle"_


End file.
